Evaluation & management · General
Home or residence visit for an established patient with low medical decision making or at least 30 minutes of total time.
- Medicare
- $78.83
- Work RVU
- 1.5
- Global, days
- Region
- General
Documentation requirements
What must appear in the operative or office note to support the claim.
Source · Editorial brief grounded in 3 cited references ↓
- Place of residence (home, assisted living, group home) and matching place of service code
- Reason for seeing the patient at the residence (not a Medicare requirement, but payers and auditors ask)
- History and exam relevant to the complaint
- Assessment and plan supporting low MDM, or at least 30 minutes of total time
- Coordination with home health or caregivers, if any
Applicable modifiers
Modifiers commonly billed with this code.
Source · AMA CPT modifier descriptors · CMS NCCI Policy Manual
What this code covers
Source · Editorial summary grounded in 3 cited references ↓
99348 reports a visit to an established patient at their home or residence, including assisted living and group homes, with low decision making or at least 30 minutes of total time. Since 2023 the home and domiciliary codes are combined, so the same codes are used for a private home and an assisted living facility.
A typical ortho use is a follow-up at an assisted living facility for chronic knee or shoulder arthritis with a medication adjustment or new home exercise instructions.
Place of service has to match the residence: 12 for a private home, 13 for assisted living, 14 for a group home. Homebound status is not required by Medicare. Postop visits inside your global stay bundled no matter where they happen.
RVU & reimbursement
Component RVUs and Medicare national rate. Actual payment varies by GPCI locality.
Source · CMS Physician Fee Schedule, RVU26A · January 2026
Work RVU vs. total RVU
The work RVU (1.5) is the surgeon's own effort — the figure physician pay and productivity targets are built on. The total RVU (2.36) adds practice overhead and malpractice, and is what drives the Medicare payment below.
| Work RVU | 1.5 |
| Practice expense RVU | 0.79 |
| Malpractice RVU | 0.07 |
| Total RVU | 2.36 |
| Medicare national rate | $78.83 |
| Global period | days |
Payment by site of service
Medicare pays different rates by setting. HOPD typically pays substantially more than ASC for the same procedure.
Source · CMS OPPS Addendum B·ASC HCPCS payment rates·2026
| Setting | Medicare rate (national) |
|---|---|
Office (PFS non-facility) Procedure performed in physician's office | $78.83 |
Common denial reasons
The recurring reasons claims for CPT 99348 get rejected.
Source · Editorial brief grounded in CMS NCCI edits, AAOS coding appeals, and cited references ↓
- Place of service does not match a home or residence setting
- Postop visit inside a surgical global period
- MDM or time does not support the level billed
- New patient code used for a patient seen in the office within three years
Frequently asked questions
Source · Generated from the editorial pipeline, verified against 3 cited references ↓
01What time is needed for 99348?
02Can 99348 be billed on the same day as a joint injection at home?
03Is 99348 used for assisted living visits?
Sources & references
Editorial content was developed using the following public sources.
Mira Scribe
Mira Scribe records medication changes and home exercise instructions, the details that lift a home follow-up to low MDM.
See how Mira captures CPT 99348 documentation